Ancient Pioneer Handicrafts

We are way out on Ketraganahalli Road, right opposite the church in K Karenahalli. The place is called Sumukha. It’s a bit of a drive to get out here, but it’s worth it because it’s quieter than the city center. Ancient Pioneer Handicrafts is mostly about things made by hand. We have a lot of items sitting around that smell like wood and old fabric. It’s not a showroom with bright lights; it’s more like a workshop that happens to have stuff for sale. Some days it’s very quiet and you can just hear the birds outside. Other days we have crates being moved around and it gets a bit messy with packing straw and tape everywhere. We started this because we liked the way old things were made and wanted to keep that going in some way. The church across the road is a good landmark for people trying to find us for the first time. We spend a lot of time talking to the people who actually make the crafts. It’s slow work. You can’t rush it. We drink a lot of coffee and try to keep the dust off the finished pieces. It’s a simple life out here in Karenahalli. We don't have a big marketing plan or anything. We just put the stuff out and hope people like it as much as we do. The road out here isn't the best, especially when it rains, but we've gotten used to the potholes over the years.